Chronic moderate heat dermatitis (erythema ab igne) in five dogs,three cats and one silvered langur

Erythema ab igne, an old and rare disease in the human literature, is an erythematous, often pigmented, reticular, macular dermatosis that occurs at the site of repeated exposure to moderate heat. We identified lesions consistent with erythema ab igne in five dogs, three cats and one silvered langur (Trachypithecus cristatus[Raffles, 1821]). In dogs and cats, the cutaneous lesion distribution typically reflected chronic exposure to moderate heat during lateral or sternal recumbency. The silvered langur developed cutaneous lesions on the dorsal neck from exposure to a heat lamp. Principal clinical lesions consisted of irregular areas of alopecia (7/9) and erythema (7/9), sometimes with hyperpigmentation (3/9). Principal histological features consisted of karyomegaly (9/9) and keratinocyte atypia (4/9), scattered apoptotic or vacuolated basal cells and/or apoptotic keratinocytes (6/9), mild mixed mononuclear interstitial or interface dermatitis (9/9) with adnexal atrophy (8/9), and a variable number of wavy eosinophilic elastic fibres (9/9). The presence of these cutaneous lesions in an animal indicates that the environment should be evaluated for exposure to chronic moderate heat, and the heat source should be eliminated or modified to prevent further exposure and progression of lesions.     

Egg binding in a cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus).

A 6-year-old cockatiel was diagnosed with egg binding based on clinical signs, physical examination findings, radiographs, and lack of oviposition. Medical management failed to induce oviposition, and surgical salpingotomy was used to remove the egg from the oviduct. Sterile egg yolk peritonitis was diagnosed based on histology. Postoperative management with leuprolide acetate and husbandary changes successfully prevented egg production for at least 2.5 months after the event.     

Biosecurity and arable use of manure and biowaste — Treatment alternatives

The potential negative environmental impact of manure and biological waste (BW) can be minimised at a profit by recycling plant nutrients in the food chain. Current large-scale livestock production, epizootic diseases and increasing globalisation increase the need for biosecurity, to minimise the risk of disease transmission to the food chain. Arable use of manure and BW can inadvertently spread infectious diseases; opinion differs concerning the risk levels. To obtain general acceptance for arable use, a hygienically safe end-product is needed. This paper provides a detailed discussion of treatment alternatives for co-treatment, i.e., mixture before treatment of manure and BW. Composting, anaerobic digestion and ammonia treatment are the three options given. A decision support tool is also presented and discussed. Suitable treatment methods must combine biosecurity aspects with environmental, economic and nutrient recycling aspects to create a beneficial whole-farm approach.     

Measuring consumer response to ‘Gala’ apples treated with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP)

Post-harvest apple treatment with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) was previously found to inhibit fruit ripening but also to inhibit the production of volatile compounds that contribute to apple flavor. The first objective of this study was to determine if consumers could distinguish 1-MCP treated and untreated Gala apples [Malus sylvestris L. (Mill.) var. domestica Borkh. Mansf.] following long-term storage. Chemical analysis showed 1-MCP treated fruit had reduced flavor volatiles compared to untreated fruit. Consumer difference tests showed they could distinguish between 1-MCP treated and untreated fruit. A second objective was to compare consumers’ acceptance for 1-MCP treated to untreated apples. Both 1-MCP treated and untreated apples received high overall liking scores that were not significantly different. Equal numbers of consumers indicated preference for 1-MCP treated and untreated fruit and there was no difference in purchase intent. However, subsets of consumers who eat Gala, Fuji or Red Delicious apples showed preference for untreated over 1-MCP treated fruit compared to consumers who do not eat these varieties.     

Prevalence of thermophilic Campylobacter species in Swedish dogs and characterization of C. jejuni isolates

Background

The aims of this study were to investigate the prevalence of Campylobacter species in Swedish dogs, to identify the species of the Campylobacter isolates and to genotype the C. jejuni isolates. Young and healthy dogs were targeted and the sampling was performed at 11 veterinary clinics throughout Sweden from October 2011 to October 2012. Faecal swab samples were collected and sent to the laboratory at the National Veterinary Institute (SVA) for isolation of Campylobacter, speciation and genotyping.

Results

Campylobacter spp. were isolated from 67 of the 180 sampled dogs which yields an overall prevalence of 37%. The most prevalent species of Campylobacter among the participating dogs was C. upsaliensis with 52 of the 67 identified isolates. A lower prevalence was observed for C. jejuni with seven identified isolates and one isolate was identified as C. helveticus. Multi-locus sequence typing (MLST) was carried out on the seven C. jejuni isolates and all sequence types that were found are also commonly found in humans. The dogs were divided into three age groups; 1) under 12 months, 2) 12 to 23 months and 3) 24 months and older. The highest prevalence was found in the two younger age groups. Dogs shedding C. jejuni were between 3–12 months of age while dogs shedding C. upsaliensis were found in all ages.

Conclusions

The present investigation finds that Campylobacter spp. known to cause campylobacteriosis in humans are present in Swedish dogs. The results suggest an age predisposition where dogs under 2 years of age are more likely to shed Campylobacter spp. than older dogs. The most commonly isolated species was C. upsaliensis followed by C. jejuni, which was only detected in dogs up to 12 months of age. All C. jejuni isolates identified in the present study were of the same MLST types that have previously been described both in humans and in animals. The awareness of the Campylobacter risk of healthy young dogs may be an important way to reduce the transmission from dogs to infants, young children and immunocompromised adults.     

兼顾面积属性与不确定性信息的样本点权重调整方法

样本点权重调整是遥感分类精度评价中样本点空间分配的关键环节。以北京市顺义区精度评价样本点为例,提出了一种兼顾面积属性与不确定性信息的样本点权重调整方法——模糊调整权重法,用于布设精度评价样本点。首先,构建用于表达不确定性信息的模糊中和指数及其权重,融合模糊中和指数权重和面积权重构建模糊调整权重,并计算各个分层的模糊调整权重结果,完成样本点特征空间分配;其次,设置不同梯度样本点集,结合平均最短距离最小化准则和空间模拟退火算法实现样本点地理空间优化布设;最后,构建权重调整效果评价指标,进行模糊调整权重效果评价,并与其他权重调整方法和未进行权重调整的布点方法进行对比分析。结果表明：顺义区不确定性大、中、小的层模糊调整权重分别为0.45、0.37、0.18,与面积权重相比,不确定性大的层权重显著增加、中层权重稍微增加、小层权重明显降低;5个不同数据集样本点权重调整的精度评价总体精度、相对精度、均方根误差和标准偏差结果分别为69.90%～73.48%、96.28%～99.82%、0.01和0.01;模糊调整权重布点方法评价效果优于面积权重、模糊中和指数权重、不确定性空间分层权重布点方法,以及空间...     

Evaluation of the performance of flow-through anodic fenton treatment in amide compound degradation

A flow-through anodic Fenton treatment (FAFT) system based on the batch AFT technology was previously developed to degrade pesticides in aqueous solution. As one of a series of benchtop and pilot-scale studies in process optimization, the goal of the reported work is to evaluate the performance of the FAFT system under various operating conditions, which is critical to bringing this technology into practical general use in the field. For this purpose, the removal efficiency of the parent pesticide and the concentration of the hydroxyl radical in FAFT were calculated on the basis of a previously developed FAFT kinetic model and used for the evaluation. N,N-Diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (DEET), an insect repellent, was used as a chemical probe. Experimental data showed that the key to a high treatment efficiency is to operate the FAFT system to achieve a maximum *OH production with a minimum input of energy and chemicals. For the anodic half-cell, the system should be operated under flow-through conditions with a self-developed optimum pH of 3.0, a relatively high flow rate, and the initial effluent recycled within 6-10 min to the FAFT system for further treatment; for the cathodic half-cell, it should have a fixed volume and be entirely replaced by another batch of cathodic solution only when the pH reaches a very high value. The delivery rate of the ferrous iron should be maintained at an electrolytic current between 0.01 and 0.02 A; the ratio of H2O2/Fe2+ should be between 5:1 and 10:1. NaCl was found to be the best electrolyte, with concentrations of 0.01-0.02 and 0.08 M in the anodic and cathodic half-cells, respectively. The FAFT system was successfully applied to degrade various model amide compounds and DEET formulations, which suggests the likelihood of extending this approach to other pesticide-containing wastewaters.